Island breaks from UK in education

by Joanne Clague

Secondary school pupils in the Isle of Man are to be taught the International GCSE.

The privately run Cambridge University system was one of three options presented to parents and teachers earlier this year. The other options were to follow the heavily-criticised changes being made to GCSEs in England or to adopt the Scottish system

The Department of Education's Paul Craine said: 'IGCSE syllabuses are international in outlook and the qualification is used in a wide range of jurisdictions. The potential, within some subjects, for teachers to opt for assessment to be based partly on course work, in addition to final examinations, means that there is flexibility for teachers in planning their curriculum.

'We feel it provides the best educational opportunity available to us for the young people of the Isle of Man and are delighted to be announcing this development.'

Preparations will begin for a move away from the English system this September, with pupils who begin Year 10 in September 2015 being the first to sit IGCSE exams on a large scale.

Education Minister Tim Crookall said the results of a consultation that yielded more than 800 responses were 'unequivocal' in their support of the IGCSE.